2017 Highlights, Cervical Radiculopathy, Potty Training

Many of you are no doubt pacing about, anxiously waiting for my annual Year in Review blog post! I am sorry to tell you I will not be recapping the year this time, for it is my New Years resolution to stop living so much in the past! I feel like I spend a lot of time reminiscing and rehashing old events, and not as much time living in the moment or looking ahead. Not only that, I think I’ve burned myself out on writing temporarily. I went on a mad tear writing crap for HowToDoThat the last few months of 2016.

But, just to appease the masses, my 2017 can be summed up with a few quick bulletpoints:

• Got a new job.
• Went on trips to Twins Spring Training in Florida, Uncle Brian’s brewery in Wilmington, and Bart’s wedding in Las Vegas.
• Visited Minneapolis in the summer and South Dakota over Thanksgiving.
• Started a new website and podcast.
• Experienced lots of new parenting moments.
• Got a bad case of cervical radiculopathy.

Ah, that last point. That is the sucky one. I believe that I pinched a nerve in my left shoulder area at some point in 2016 and lived with some minor pains when I moved my neck in certain positions. Then a full year later I believe I aggravated that injury, possibly by working out, and it has become a full-blown ordeal now. I recently complained about it on Facebook and someone said “the problem didn’t happen overnight, and it won’t go away overnight.” But it actually did kinda happen overnight. I literally just woke up one morning in agony and haven’t recovered!

I can’t sleep comfortably, I can’t sit on a couch, I can’t socialize at a party without writhing in pain. Really nothing helps very much. Swimming is pretty good… aerobic exercise is supposedly good, plus it releases endorphins which also help. Sitting in a firm, ergonomic chair is mildly helpful while I’m sitting. IcyHot or BioFreeze help momentarily. But pretty much I have intense pain from my neck through my shoulder all the way to my left fingertips 23 hours/day. I am doing physical therapy twice per week. I’ve been told to be patient, but after a dozen sessions I don’t feel like I’m getting anywhere.

I really hoped there would be a magical cure, like the chiropractor just cracking my neck and I was back to normal, or a couple massage therapy sessions curing what ailed me. But no, it’s been nothing like that. I diligently do my exercises given to me by the therapist at home and get some adjustments while at therapy twice a week and hope for the best.

In other news…

• We had record cold here the past week! It snowed for a second time this winter on New Years Eve, and we woke up Wednesday morning to 15º and frozen windshields. I was quickly reminded that winter isn’t so great.
• Johnny is pretty much 100% potty trained! Lauren, grandpa Steve, and I worked with him over his 20-day winter break and he can wear big boy undies now. He’s very proud of himself.
• I took Johnny to the Alamo Drafthouse Tuesday morning to celebrate his last day of winter break with the new Disney Pixar movie Coco, which we both thoroughly enjoyed. He held his pee all the way through the movie, somehow.